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Most/Least Difficult Zelda Games - ranked

Iridescence

Emancipated Wind Fish
Joined
May 11, 2014
Location
United States
From most difficult to least difficult:

  1. Adventure of Link - It deals lots of unavoidable damage.
  2. Legend of Zelda - All around challenging but Level 9 is brutal.
  3. A Link to the Past - Puzzles and combat, all-around challenging
  4. Oracle of Ages - Most difficult game, puzzle-wise
  5. Oracle of Seasons - Punishes you if you aren't skilled at Zelda
  6. Link's Awakening - easy for an old school game but still challenging
  7. Majora's Mask - Steep learning curve.
  8. Ocarina of Time - Challenging puzzles. Some difficult combat.
  9. Phantom Hourglass - Mostly easy except for brutal Ocean King Temple
  10. Twilight Princess - Really easy combat but challenging puzzles
  11. Spirit Tracks - It's not super-easy but not challenging either.
  12. Skyward Sword - Levels are less complex ; combat is generally easy
  13. A Link Between Worlds - Gets easier as you get more hearts
  14. The Wind Waker - Simple puzzles ; Parrying makes combat easy
  15. The Minish Cap - You have to really screw up in order to die
 
Joined
Jan 11, 2015
For me it's quiet different. I never found the Oracle games that hard, yes, some parts, but overall I found Majora's Mask more difficult, especially if you want to get all the items and masks. Sure, Zelda II is off course first place :P If think after that Majora's Mask or the first Zelda, which just didn't gave you any clue what to do, and level 9 is indeed brutal. Fourth place is A Link to the Past. Those four are certain for me, however, after those I don't know anymore, it changes, and as I got better understanding the English in the game (when I was young I just skipped many textboxes), I discovered many new things, before then every Zelda was hard :P
 
Joined
May 4, 2014
Location
California
I'll probably come back and edit this after I play MM3D
Starting From the Most Difficult:

Oracle of Ages-big overworld, forced annoying mini-games, solving puzzles in different time zones

Oracle of Seasons-challenging dungeons, forced annoying mini-games, big diverse world, interesting puzzles

The Legend of Zelda-no clue where to go first time, crappy gray over-world map block, some challenging dungeons and unintuitive puzzles, veeery challenging 2nd quest where nothing is where it was and the dungeon layouts are completely different

Adventure of Link-have to grind a little for levels, no dungeon map, challenging dungeons from the get-go, a lot of good bosses

Skyward Sword-faulty controls make it more frustrating then it should be and the stupid stamina meter sucks, especially in Lanayru.

A Link to the Past-some challenging dungeons, switching between worlds to get to different locations

Twilight Princess-had some nice challenging dungeons, push block puzzles...stupid sol grabbing wallmasters!

Link's Awakening DX-some dull but challenging dungeons, interesting puzzles

Minish Cap-great dungeons and puzzles, some fantastic boss fights

Spirit Tracks-stupid demon trains, and a very unique dungeon

Ocarina of Time 3D-uhh...the water temple and the gold skulltula quest? this game was pretty easy, I've never beaten a Zelda game so fast

A Link Between Worlds-some challenging dungeons, trying to get to the desert palace was super annoying. This game is one of the easiest Zelda games I've ever gone through
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 11, 2011
From hardest to easiest:

1 - TAOL - Unforgivable at times
2 - OOS - I died quite a lot on this
3 - TLOZ
4 - ALTTP
5 - MM - Although the 3DS version is more dumbed down
6 - SS - Purely for the motion controls
7 - TP
8 - ST - For the stylus controls
9 - PH - Same as above
10 - OOA
11 - FSA
12 - LA
13 - TMC - It would be last, but the last boss is hard
14 - TWW - Was never much of a challenge
15 - ALBW
16 - Four Swords - Too short
17 - OOT - Because I know it too well
 

SavageWizzrobe

Eating Link since 1987
Joined
Jul 27, 2010
Location
The Wind Temple
I'll just rank the ones I know the most about, considering I haven't played FS/FSA in forever and haven't played LA, PH, ST, or ALBW...

1) AoL: This game is just brutal. Expect to die a lot!
2) LoZ: You're dumped with Hyrule with no idea of what to do, and there are some enemies that will kill you consistently.
3) ALttP: Exploration isn't too hard, but the combat is.
4) SS: A bit of a learning curve, and the puzzles can be tricky. Some bosses are quite hard, normal enemies do a decent amount of damage.
5) OoA/OoS: Similar to ALttP, but a bit more forgiving.
6) MM: Easier exploration, but hard puzzles and a couple hard boss fights. Normal enemies are easy though.
7) OoT: Similar difficulty to MM, but puzzles are a bit easier and normal enemies are a bit tougher. Bosses are a bit easier and exploration is a bit harder.
8) TP: Exploration and puzzles are hard, but combat is easy.
9) MC: Mostly easy except for the final boss. Decent puzzle difficulty though.
10) WW: This game is too easy. I really should learn to speedrun it!
 
Joined
Jul 13, 2016
Gender
Potato
1.LoZ:The classic NES game, Zelda just so happens to be my opinion of an extremely confusing game. With a pretty expansive map and mandatory hidden objects in one tile areas, it's hard to find anything. Really garbled text, slow progression, and an insane final dungeon and boss that are impossible to beat without max level gear and the silver key make this game for diehard gamers only. Combat is actually relatively easy after a bit of getting used to however.
2.AoL:With sidescroller mechanics, most atttacks are unavoidable and deal massive damage. Combined with a learning curve and a confusing overworld, this game is by far one of the most difficult games in the Zelda franchise if not one of the most. However, a few grinding spots can make the game a bit easier and the screen format leads to some glitches that can allow a much faster game.
3.SS:I didn't enjoy Skyward Sword and all the hype that came with it. Motion controls, mixed with really weird walking controls makes for a nightmare of a game. Take off the motion control and this game might be 10th place.
4.OOA+OOS:The constant switching makes it a long game, and the long dungeons aren't hard but take a while.
5.ALttP I don't know why people are complaining about this one's combat, it's more avoidable than AoL. The puzzles are cake.
6.MM:Great game, but I felt that it was too rushed. Personally the second and fourth temples dragged on for the equivalent of two temples in OoT. The puzzles were difficult, the combat was easy, the moon countdown doesn't really bother you, but the sidequests are numerous, and certain parts of the game are confusing, such as the Garo Mask quest.
7.TP:Easiest combat ever...the puzzles in all the dungeons were hard. With an extraneous beginning and and easy endgame, this one is not to hard to beat. I hated Stallord for being...annoying....
8.OoT:The start to 3D Zelda games was fun. With puzzles slightly easier than MM and TP. Bosses were a piece of quiche and early game was too easy.
9.WW:The small amount of enemies, slow enemy attack rate, and overall combat system makes fighting almost nothing. I can see the creativity put into the bosses. The only difficult part are the average puzzles and pathetic exploration.
10.ST:Easy combat, hard puzzles, and I like trains, the weird 2 screen gameplay didn't really help.
11.MC:I enjoyed playing this on as a kid. Looking back on it, it's still enjoyable, but not hard. The puzzles involving clones were easy, and most puzzle elements and items were practically forgotten into the game. The game was short and the only hard dungeon was the last, with a ridiculously hard boss and simple puzzles that are difficult to execute.
12.TH:It's a pitifully easy and short game with simple combat and simple puzzles, but I'm giving it one rank higher due to the fact that your progression is also determined by two other (strangers') players' collaboration.
13.LA:Crap story, crap combat, crap items, and the almost nonexistent puzzles make this game crap, enough said.
14.FS:..What do you expect from a non-open world exploration game? This game is an odd egg, and easy to complete compact with not so difficult combat, and average puzzles.
15.FSA:Same as the first installment but worse.
16.LbW:The puzzles were OK, but the short game and easy combat made for a weak game.
17.PH:Way easier than its cousin WW, was only tough for 20 minutes, the rest of the game was jello.

BoTW:???Let's just wait and see ^
 

CrimsonCavalier

Fuzzy Pickles
Joined
Mar 27, 2015
Location
United States
Gender
XY
• Zelda II: Adventure of Link is by far the hardest game in the series. It's hard to the point where it's really not that fun. A lot of old games are like that. I never played it as a kid, so I never got good at it. And playing it now is beyond a chore.

• The Legend of Zelda is difficult because a lot of the enemies are just random in their movement. It isn't inherently "unfair" and "cheap" like AoL is, but it's still difficult in its own right.

After that, the difficulty of the games really depends on your time with the game. Ocarina of Time was hard the first time I played it, but I don't have a hard time with it at all today. Same with Majora's Mask. Twilight Princess had some difficult moments, I'll admit. Link's Awakening had a few. Link to the Past was and is still pretty easy. Minish Cap is still a bit hard for me, but only because it's the one I'm least familiar with. Now, Wind Waker ... some really crappy parts in that game too. Some enemies were "unfair", but the entire game wasn't like that. However, the Worm form of Puppet Ganon is the most difficult battle in Zelda history. That boss is unfair and cheap and I hate it.
 
Joined
Oct 14, 2013
Location
Australia
The hardest to easiest LoZ games I've played where 1 is the hardest, of the Zelda games I have played.
(Note well I don't find AoL the hardest game in the series at all. That game has a high learning curve, but once mastered it's not too hard at all).

  1. Hyrule Warriors - Many of the Adventure Mode squares are super hard, to the point of being simply unfair. Add in the fact that you have to grind levels for hundreds of hours to get anywhere in the game and you have one very hard game.
  2. NintendoLand:Zelda mini game - These mini games, playing as sword Link, then as Bow Link, both start off easy, then get very very hard by the end. The special stages after you beat Ganon are some of the hardest things in Zelda history.
  3. Majora's Mask - Just beating the game is not too hard one you've worked out some of the game's puzzles, but 100%ing the game is very tough indeed. The mini games in this Zelda game are very hard.
  4. Legend of Zelda:2nd Quest - This is more than just a master quest. New thing are in 2nd Quest, like red and blue ghosts, walk though walls (some of them one way only), lose rupee or lose a heart container rooms as well as the tougher regular enemies appearing much earlier on. This makes 2nd Quest hard, but not too hard if you use the skills from beating the 1st Quest first.
  5. Twilight Princess - This game was actually harder than I wanted it to be. I often was running low on hearts. Nothnig expecially hard, but the game has a high learning curve and took me a while to master it.
  6. Oracle of Ages + Oracle of Seasons - Takes a while to get used to stylus combat. Also not the easiest dungeons ever, but overall not too hard at all.
  7. Zelda 2:Adventures of Link - Totally not as hard as everyone says it is. It's one of the easier 2D NES side scrolling platformers out there. As long as you get the abilities to beat the bosses before you fight the bosses you'll be ok and not stuck in a boss room with a boss you can not beat (can happen 2x in the game). Grinding levels early on is not necessary but it does help early on. As a side you can get the hammer before the candle. I did it as 6/6/6 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPDkeZ4MDBY.
  8. Legend of Zelda:1st Quest - If you do all of the dungeons in order, only Level-6 will provide you with a lot of trouble as its difficulty is totally out of order. Levels 7 and 8 are easier than 6 in my opinion. Overall the game is not that hard with a little practice. You can even get the blue ring right off the bat, with some rupee farming to make things easier if you need.
  9. Skyward Sword - Not too hard if you forget about the broken motion controls. I only found a a couple of the battles at the end of the game hard, but only because the stamina meter existing was the limiting factor, not my skill. It's purely technical issues and bad game design that makes this game harder than it should be, not gamer skill. The final, final boss might take a few attempts to beat though as it's a little RNG to beat it.
  10. Minish Cap - Not a very hard game at all. Quite fun actually. Short but fun. The only really hard part here is finding all of the kinstones.
  11. Phantom Hourglass - Master attacking with the stylus and you're good to go here. Not that hard at all.
  12. Spirit Tracks - Master attacking with the stylus and you're good to go here. Not that hard at all.
  13. Ocarina of Time:Master Quest - I put this low on the list, because if you play this after beating the 1st Quest of OOT, then this will not be hard as you can use all of the skills learnt from the first quest there.
  14. Ocarina of Time - A very forgiving game once you get used to playing 3D Zelda games. Everything is spaced out, you can farm rupees and hearts whenever you want. Most of the mini games are not too hard (with a couple of exceptions). One of the main reasons OOT was so popular.
  15. Link's Awakening - This overall is similar in style to the first LoZ game, except with unique boss battles that overall are not that hard and no not last that long. Moat of the tougher style enemies from LoZ1 have been changed up with easier enemy types.
  16. A Link Between Worlds - A slighty harder version of ALTTP.
  17. Wind Waker - Apart from a couple of boss battles and getting all of the pictographs, this game is pathetically easy. This is not a fault of how easy the boss battles are. This is because the dungeons are short and very pooly designed. The dungeon where Link has no sword is probably the best one in the game as it adds a little challenge, the stealth aspect. Poor gane design makes this game easy.
  18. A Link To The Past - Easiest Zelda game ever. The only part I ever found hard was getting to the top of death mountain to enter the 3rd light world dingeon. There's a trick you need with the mirror to do so. Took me ages to work it out. Past that the game can be beaten in your sleep it's that easy. The game however is designed rather well. It's a very fun game. Also the music here is better than any other Zelda game ever. Just because this game gets the wooden spoon for difficulty, this does not make it a bad game. Still worth playing.
 
Joined
Sep 7, 2016
I think Wind Waker is the hardest LOZ game I've played, but I might just be really bad since I haven't played any others except 5 minutes of OOT 3D.
 

TattooArtist

I'm the B and my boyfriend is the T in LGBT ❤
Joined
Aug 2, 2016
Location
Ciel's House
Gender
Weeaboo
From most difficult to least difficult:

  1. Adventure of Link - It deals lots of unavoidable damage.
  2. Legend of Zelda - All around challenging but Level 9 is brutal.
  3. A Link to the Past - Puzzles and combat, all-around challenging
  4. Oracle of Ages - Most difficult game, puzzle-wise
  5. Oracle of Seasons - Punishes you if you aren't skilled at Zelda
  6. Link's Awakening - easy for an old school game but still challenging
  7. Majora's Mask - Steep learning curve.
  8. Ocarina of Time - Challenging puzzles. Some difficult combat.
  9. Phantom Hourglass - Mostly easy except for brutal Ocean King Temple
  10. Twilight Princess - Really easy combat but challenging puzzles
  11. Spirit Tracks - It's not super-easy but not challenging either.
  12. Skyward Sword - Levels are less complex ; combat is generally easy
  13. A Link Between Worlds - Gets easier as you get more hearts
  14. The Wind Waker - Simple puzzles ; Parrying makes combat easy
  15. The Minish Cap - You have to really screw up in order to die

I think Twilight Princess is pretty damn hard cuz of the ice block puzzle, the statue puzzle and the horse carridage puzzle just:ham::mad:
 
Joined
Oct 7, 2016
Gender
Male
From most difficult to least difficult:

  1. Adventure of Link - It deals lots of unavoidable damage.
  2. Legend of Zelda - All around challenging but Level 9 is brutal.
  3. A Link to the Past - Puzzles and combat, all-around challenging
  4. Oracle of Ages - Most difficult game, puzzle-wise
  5. Oracle of Seasons - Punishes you if you aren't skilled at Zelda
  6. Link's Awakening - easy for an old school game but still challenging
  7. Majora's Mask - Steep learning curve.
  8. Ocarina of Time - Challenging puzzles. Some difficult combat.
  9. Phantom Hourglass - Mostly easy except for brutal Ocean King Temple
  10. Twilight Princess - Really easy combat but challenging puzzles
  11. Spirit Tracks - It's not super-easy but not challenging either.
  12. Skyward Sword - Levels are less complex ; combat is generally easy
  13. A Link Between Worlds - Gets easier as you get more hearts
  14. The Wind Waker - Simple puzzles ; Parrying makes combat easy
  15. The Minish Cap - You have to really screw up in order to die
Nintendo should really remake zelda 2 but fix all of the unfairness (which there is a lot of)
 
Joined
Oct 2, 2016
It's mostly a product of the time. Games have been progressively getting easier. Skyward Sword is easier than Twilight Princess is easier than Wind Waker, etc.
 
Joined
Oct 21, 2016
From least to most difficult:
ALBW>MC>FS>WW>OoT>TP>SS>FSA>MM>ST>PH>LA>TFH>OoS>OoA>ALttP>LoZ>TAoL
 

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